Elevator



July 9 I J. DARBY ELEVAT 0 R Filed March 5. 1926 4 Sheets-Sheet l 1,635,265 July 12, 1927. J DARBY ELEVATOR Filed March 5. 1926 4 Sheets-She et 2 ll l-H r1! M INVENTOI? I 1,635,2 July 12, 1927. v J DARBY s5 ELEVATOR Filed March 5 1926 {Sheets-Sheet 3 WW me July 12, 1927. 1,635,265-

J. DARBY ELEVATOR Filed March 5. 1926 4 Sheets-Sheet 4 Patented Jul 12, 1927.

UNITED I STATES masses PATENT OFFICE.

JOHN DARBY, OF PHILADELPHIA, PENNSYLVANIA, ASSIGNOR TO SHUR LOG ELEVA- TOR SAFETY CO. INC., OF NEW YORK,

N. Y., A CORPORATION OF NEW YORK.

ELEVATOR.

Application filed March In application for Letters Patent of the United States by the present applicant, Serial No. 7 7 ,441, filed December 24, 1925, there are shown and described devices whereby the door, either of the elevator car or at any landing of the shaft is opened or closed, under the control by power developed through the movement of the car. The more ing motor, to open the door, is effected atu-o matically as the car comes to rest. In general such devices, as shown in the present application, are the same in construction and arrangement 'as the similar devices shown and described in the earlier application above mentioned, but there are also included in the present application certain supplemental devices whereby the automatic operation takes place only as the car comes so to rest or substantially to rest at a landing and does not take place it the car is brought to rest between landings, when the operation of the door moving motor should take place only at the will of the operator.

The invention sought to be covered in this application will be described more particularly hereinafter with reference to the accompanying drawings in which it is illustrated and in which, for the sake of clearness of disclosure, parts identical with or similar to parts shown in the earlier application above mentioned will be indicated as far as possible by like letters and figures of reference. In the drawings:

Figure 1 is a partial view in elevation, generally similar to Figure 3 of the earlier application above mentioned, showing an elevator car with the door operating and motor controlling devices in association there with, the arrangement of some of the parts being somewhat different from that shown in the drawings of said earlier application,

Figure 2 is a partial view of the upper part of acar and its appurtenances as seen from a point of View at right angles to that 5, 1926. Serial No. 92,425.

of Figure 1, with the controlling valve in section and with the electrical controlling devices shown diagrammatically.

Figure 3 is a detail view, partly in elevation and partly in section, generally similar to Figure of the said earlier application, illustrating, so far as is necessary for the purposes of the present application, the power pump and its connections.

Figure 4 is a diagrammatic view illustrating more particularly the means whereby the power devices on the car I are actuated through the movement of the car.

Figure 5 is a partial view in elevation illustrating the application of an electric motor for the operation of a power pump, such. as that shown in Figure 3.

Figure 6 is a partial diagrammatic view of th electrical cont-rolling devices shown in Figure 2 with the governor operated independently of the pump.

Figure 7 is a diagrammatic view generally similar to Figure 4 but showing the power device actuated independently of the movement of the car, as by the electric motor shown in Figure 5, but with the operation of the controlling devices determined by the movement of the car.

The invention sought to be covered in the present application not being concerned particularly with the devices for directly eti'ecting movement of the door, such devices are not shown in detail herein but may be as sumed to be identical with the corresponding devices shown in said earlier application, so far as an understanding'oi': the operation of such devices is necessary to an understanding of the invention sought to be covered herein.

In Figures 1 and 2 of the drawings there is shown at a a portion of the frame or body of an elevator car of ordinary construction, the floor being indicated at a. It is assumed that the car is raised or lowered by any suitable means suiiiciently indicated at 0, 0' in Figure 4, the present invention not being concerned therewith. It is also assumed that the car is provided with a controller be); H and handle H and an interlocking rod, not shown, which operates in the usual manner'to prevent movement of the controller handle to start the car when the door, either of the car itself or at each shaft opening, is not in closed position. These parts they be of any, usual or suitable construction and need not be shown in detail, the present invention not being directly concerned therewith. On the car and at each shaft landing there is a suitable door, indicated somewhat conventionally at Z) in Figure 2, which is movable horizontally to open or close the doorway of the car or the shaft opening as the case may be.

In the embodiment of the invention illus trated in the drawings, particularly in Figure 4, as a suitable means tor the operation of the source of power or pump hereinafter mentioned, a relatively fixed cable 0, which may have connected to it at its lower end a weight c for the purpose of maintaining it under tension, and may have its upper end connected to a relatively fixed point at the top of the elevator shaft, as at is passed about the sheaves c and 0, one 01 which, in the construction shown, operates a double-acting pump (Z (secured to the under side of the car floor) through the medium of a crank disc cl, shown in broken lines in Figure 3, to which are connected the pitmen (Z of two pistons e which reciprocate in corresponding cylinders a The cylinders are shown as mounted within a tank 6 with which each cylinder is connected through a suitable intake valve 6. From each cylinder the incompressible me dium such as oil, which is operated upon by this pump or source of power, is delivered through a suitable outlet valve 6, and a pipe connection a to an air tank or receiver 6 in which air, or some other suitable compressible fluid is compressed by the delivery to the receiver of the incompressible medium supplied by the source of power. These parts and other associated parts to be mentioned, may be constructed and arranged substantially as shown and described in the earlier application and are reterred to here only as illustrative of a convenient arrangement and to enable the relation thereto of the devices with which the present invention is particularly concerned to be understood readily.

As explained in said application, the receiver c is connected by a pipe 0 with an ordinary diaphragm pressure regulator c, the stem e of which carries a valve 6 which controls the delivery of the incompressible medium through a connection 6 into the receiver a, and a valve 6 which controls the return of the incompressible medium to the reservoir 6 through a connec tion 6 a check valve 6 being introduced in the connection a. Thereby, when the predetern'iined pressure has been developed in the receiver 6 the incompressible medium is bypassed or short-circuited and returned directly to the tank 6 The pressure developed by the compression in the receiver 6 or the air therein above the incompressible medium is made use of, by its reaction on the incompressible medium to operate the elevator doors, the oil or other incompressible medium being delivered from the lower through a connection 6 and branch connections e 6 under the control of a controlling valve 6 to one end or the other of a power cylinder f, which is mounted on the car. In the earlier application above mentioned, the controlling valve was shown as a four-way valve of ordinary construction, but in the present instance it is shown as a balanced valve, of substantially usual construction, coi'nprising a cylinder 0 with a connection at e to the tank 6 connections at e and e to the branch pipes 6 and a, through which the incompressible medium is delivered to the cylinder 7, connections at e and 6 through which the incompressible medium is returned to the tank 6', and a piston 6 The mechanical connections through which the pressure of the oil or other in.- coinpressible medium in the cylinder 7 is made to move the door are substantially the same as those shown and described in the earlier application above mentioned, but will be briefly described. The rod f of the piston within thecylinder f carries a rack f which engages a gear segment f. The lat ter carries a bevel gear segment f in engagement with a corresponding bevel gear segment mounted loosely on a shaft which is mounted in suitable hearings on the ear. A clutch member 7" splined on the shaft 7" and adapted for engagement with the bevel gear segment f provides a controllable means for effecting operating engagement and disengagement between the bevel gear segment and the shaft. It is unnecessary, for the purposes of the present invention, to explain in detail the means for controlling the clutch. Partial rotation of the shaft 7" effects, through mechanism shown generally at g, and described in detail in said earlier application, a traveller mounted for horizontal movement on rails 71, i and adapted to be operatively connected with the door by opposed jaws 76 normally held in retracted or inoperative position and adapted to be moved into operative position to engage between them a bar Z) carried by the door 7).

All of the mechanical devices thus far referred to may be of any usual or suitable construction, arrangement and mode of operation. The present invention is particularly concerned with the devices by which the admission of pressure to one end or the other of the cylinder is controlled for the purpose of efiecting movement or the door to open or to close, the control of the admission or pressure to the cylinder being accomplished, in the construction shown end of the receiver a Till through control of the valve 6 In the con.- struction now to be described and with which the present invention is more particularly concerned, the valve is controlled by automatic or semiautomatic devices, the opera tion of which is initiated'by or involved. with the movement of the car itself, so that the operation of the door operm i motor, to open the door, is effected automatically as the car comes to rest when such coming to rest or substantially coming to rest takes place at a floor landing, without attention or action on the part of the operator, the described devices are not intended to operate automatically if the car comes to rest between floors, as may sometimes happen, it being then desirable that the operation of the door moving devices shall take place, if at all, only at the will and under the con trol of the operator. V

In the arrangement shown, the shaft which carries the sheave c carries also a gear 0 which meshes with a pinion 0 on agovernor shaft 0* which carries an ordinary governor a. A longitudinally movable member 0 or the governor carries an insulated bridge piece 0 which, when the governor is at rest and therefore when the elevator car is stationary, bridges two electrical terminals 5 and 6. hen the car is in motion the governor is rotated, the bridge piece 0' is withdrawn from the terminals 5 and 6, and the circuit therethrough is opened.

Positioned in suitable proximity to the governor is a magnet 7, the electrical connections of which willv be referred to hereinafter. Associated with the magnet '7 is an armature lever 8, which carries an insulated bridge piece 9 to bridge the vgap between two terminals 11 and 12, the arn'mture being held normally in contact with the terminals as by spring 10. An extension 18 of the armature 8 beyond its pivot is adapted to be engaged by a latch 1 1 in such operative'relation with the governor that when the governor is in motion and the bridge piece 0 is withdrawn, the latch disengages the armature extension 13 and permits the armature to be influenced by the spring 10. A spring 16 holds the arm of the latch normally toward a flange on the movable member of the governor.

The valve rod 6 of the door controlling, balanced valve 6 has fixed thereon a lug 6 which coacts with adjustable'stops e and e to limit the movement of the rod 6 which is extended to form or bear an armature 19 common to two solenoids 17 and 18, therod or the armature having a pin and slot connection 22 with a lever 21 pivoted at 23. The lever 21 carries a brid 'e piece 27, which is adapted, when the lever is in the dotted line position, to bridge the gap between two terminals 28 and 29, and when the lever is in the full line position, to

bridge the gap between two terminals 30, 31. It will be observed that the terminal 6 above mentioned is connected through the solenoid 17 to the terminal 30v and ,that the terminal 5 is connected through the terminals 11 and 12 and through a switch to be reterred to, to the positive pol-e of the battery B, the negative pole of which is connected to the terminal 81.

It will be observed further that the terminal 28 is connected to the negative pole of the batteryand that the terminal 29 is connected through the solenoid 18 and the switch to be mentioned, to the positive pole of the battery,

At each floor of the elevator shaft is a cam or shoe for coaction with a roller 5% carried Joy one arm or" a counter-weighted bell crank lever 55, which is, pivotally mounted on the elevator car, as at 51, the other arm 52 carrying a bridge piece 53 to bridge the gap between two terminals 58, 59 when the roller 54 is in contact with the cam or shoe 60. An adjustable stop '57 is provided for coaction with a finger 56 of the lever 55 to limit themovement thereof under the influence of the counter-weight 52*, by which the circuit is opened at the points 58, 59 when the car is not at or near a floor landing and the roller 54 is not in contact with the cam 60. It will be seen, therefore, thatexcept when the car is at or near a floor the circuit will be broken at the points 58, 59 and no current will flow through the valve operating solenoids 17 and 18, even though the car comes to rest between floors and the circuit is closed' by the governor at the points 5, 6.

It will be understood that whenever the car comes to rest. at a floor or between floors, the movement of the governor ceases and, if the circuit were not broken at the poii e 58, 59, the solenoid 17 would be ei'iergizcd and the lever 21, which just previous-l; had been in the full line position, would be moved shifting the valve 6 so as to admit the pressure to the door operating mo or to cause the door to open. Howev-r, in the normal operation, the circuit is broken at the points 58, 59 so that the coming of the car to rest between the: floors will not cause the door to open; On the other hand, when the car stops at or near a floor, the circuit is closed by the governor at the points, 5, 6 and is also closed by the described means at the points 58, 59 so that the door moving means are then caused automatically to open the door.

Under the conditions just retcri current flows from the battery throu the to the left, shifting the valve 22 to admit the pressure medium to that end of the cylinder which will cause the opening of the door, the circuit through the solenoid 17 will be opened, leaving it dead.

To effect the closing of the door while the car is still at the floor and the circuit gap at 58, 59 is closed as herein iefore de scribed, there is provided at some point n the car, convenient to the operator, as in the controller handle, a switch H by which may be closed a normally open gap between the points 71, h in a branch from the positive side of the battery B which includes the magnet 7, the solenoid 18 and the contact 29, bridge piece 27 and contact 28 back to the negative side of the battery. The clos ing by the operator of this branc circuit causes the solenoid 18 to be energized and the valve to be shifted so as to admit the pressure to the other end of the cylinderf and thereby to cause the closing movement of the door. The movement of the lever 21 thus occasioned, from the left hand or dotted line position to the right hand or full line position, opens the circuit at the contacts 28, 29 and leaves the solenoid 18 dead.

As the car must not move until the door is closed, the governor will not break the circuit thus reestablished through the solenoid 17 which would again be energized to shift the valve to the door opening position unless another means should he provided to break this circuit. As such means,- the magnet 7 is provided so that when the circuit through the same is closed by the operation of the switch H, it is energized and the cir cuit through the solenoid 17 is broken by the armature 8 at the gap l1, 12. To avoid the necessity of holding the switch H in closed position, in, order to keep the circuit through the solenoid 17 open until after the movement of the car commences, the latch 14 is provided so that when the armature 8 is influenced by the magnet 7 its extension 13 will be engaged by the latch l l and the gap 11, 12 thus be kept open. The latch is disengaged by the movement of the governor through the coaction of the flange 0" with the tail ll of the latch fi l as soon as the movement of the car has commenced, leaving the armature 8 free to be actuated by the spring so as to close again the gap 11, 12.

In the embodiment of the invention illnetrated in Figures 1 to l, the pump which is taken as the source of power for the movement of the door, is shown as operated by the cable 0 and the sheave c on the shaft 0 which carries the crank disc (Z', the shaft 0* being also geared to the governor shaft 0 It will be obvious, however, that any other suitable source of power might be provided and that the governor might be operated independently of the source of power for the purpose of controlling the operation of the door operating mechanism through the movement of the car. Such a. modiii cation is illustrated in Figures 5, 6 and 7, in which the pump (Z is shown as operated by a suitable electric motor (Z through suitable gearing clfithe pipe connect-ions to and from the pump remaining as before. The cable 0 passes about the sheaves c and c as before and the sheave 0* is operatively connected through its shaft 0 and gears and 0 wit-h the shaft 0' andof the governor c which, through the flange c and the bridge piece 0 controls the electrical connections as already described.

In the embodiment of the invention illustrated and in the description of the construction shown, the door to be operated is shown and referred to as a shaft door, but the term door as used in the claims, is to he understood in a. broad sense, as indicating a door of any kind, either as to its particular construction or its location, and either as a shaft door or as wear door.

It will be understood that various changes in details of construction and arrangement can he made to suit different conditions of use, for the convenience of the manufac turer or erector, and that the invention, therefore, except as pointed out in the accompanying claims, is not limited to the particular construction and arrangement of parts as shown and described herein.

I claim as my invention:

1. In an elevator, the combination of a car, adoor, a door operating motor and intermediate connections to effect movement of the door, means to control. the operation of the motor, devices actuated through the coming to rest of the car to operate said means to cause the motor to effect opening movement of the door, and other devices actuated by the positioning of the car at a floor to permit the operation of the first named devices only when the car is positioned at a floor.

2. In an elevator, the combination of a car, a door, a door operating motor and intermediate connections to effect movement of the door, a valve to control the operation of the motor, devices actuated through the coming to restof the car to operate said valve to cause the motor to effect opening movemenr of the door, and other devices actuated by the positioning of the car at a floor to permit the operation of the first named devices only when the car is positioned at afloor.

3. In an elevator, the combination of a car, a door, a cylinder and piston and inter mediate connections to effect movement of the door, means to supply a motor fluid to one end or the other of the piston, a valve to control the admission of the motor fluid to one end or the other of the piston, devices actuated through the coming to restv of the car to operate said valve to cause the motor to eflect opening movement of the door, and other devices actuated by the positioning of the car at a fioor to permit the operation of the first named devices only when the car is positioned at a floor.

4. The combination of a car, a door, a cylinder and piston and intermediate connections to eflect movement of the door, a pump operated by the movement of the car to supply motor fluid under pressure to one end or the other of the piston, a valve to control the admission of the motor fluid to one end or the other of the piston, devices actuated through the coming to rest of the car to operate said valve to cause the motor to efl'fect opening movement of the door, and other devices actuated by the positioning of the car at a floor to permit the operation of the first named devices only when the car is positioned at a floor.

5. In an elevator, the combination of a car, a door, a door operatingmotor and intermediate connections to effect movement of the door, means tosupply motor fluid under pressure to the motor, means influenced by the coming of the car to rest at any point to determine the transmission of pressure to said motor, and other means influenced by the coming of the car to rest at a floor to permit the operation of the last named means only when the car is positioned at a floor;

6. In an elevator, the combination of a car, a door, a cylinder and piston with intermediate connections to effect movement of the door, a source of power to supply a motor fluid under pressure to the cylinder, means influenced by the coming of the car to rest at any point to determine the transmission of pressure from said source of power to said cylinder, and other means influenced by the coming of the car to rest at a floorto permit the operation of the last named means only when the car is positioned at a floor.

7. In an elevator, the combination of a car, a door, a cylinder and piston with connections to efl'ect movement of the door, a

source of power to supply a motor fluid under pressure to the cylinder, a valve to control. the transmission of pressure to the cylinder, means actuated through the coming to rest of the car at any point to shift said valve to cause opening movement of the door, and other means actuated by the coming to rest of the car at a floor to permit the operation of the first named means only when the car is positioned at a floor.

8. In an elevator, the combination of a car, a door, a door operating motor and intermediate connections to effect movement of the door, a source of power to supply motor fluid under pressure to said motor, a valve to determine the transmission of pressure to the motor, devices actuated through the coming to restof the car to shift the valve to cause the motor to eifect opening movement of the door, and other devices under the control of the operator to shift the valve to cause the motor to effect closing movement of the door.

9. In an elevator, the combination of a car, a door, a door operating motor and intermedia e connections to effect movement of the door, a governor actuated by the movement of the car, means actuated by the governor as the car comes to rest at any point to detei no the operation of said motor, and devices actuated by the positioning or the car at a floor to permit the operation oi said means only when the car is positioned at a floor.

10. In an elevator, the combination of a car, a door, a door operating motor and intermediate connections to effect movement of the door, a source of power to supply motor fluid under pressure to the motor, a valve to control the transmission of pressure to the motor, a governor actuated in the movement of the car, means actuated by the governor as the car comes to rest at any point to shift the valve, and devices actuated by the positioning of the car at a floor to permit the operation of said means only when the car is positioned at a floor.

11. In an elevator, the combination of a car, a door, a door operating motor and intermediate connections to efl'ect movement ot the door, a source of power to supply motor fluid under pressure to said motor, means to control the transmission 0t pressure to the motor, electromagnetic devices to operate said means, and circuit connections and contacts actuated in the movement of the car to control the operation of said electromagnetic devices.

12. In an elevator, the combination of a car, a door, a door operating motor and intermediate connections to effect movement of the door, a source of power to supply motor fluid under pressure to said motor, means to control the transmission of pres sure to the motor, electromagnetic devices to operate said means, circuit connections, and contacts actuated as the car comes to rest to control the operation of said electromagnetic devices tocause the door to be opened, and other circuit connections and contacts under the control of the operator to control the operation of said electromagnetic devices to cause the door to be closed.

13. In an elevator, the combination of a car, a door, a door operating motor and intermediate connections to efiect movement of the door, a source of power to supply motor fluid under pressure to said motor, means to control the transmission of pressure to the motor, electromagnetic devices to operate said means, circuit connections and contacts actuated in the movement or the car to control the operation of said elec- I II) tromagnetic devices as the car comes to rest at any point, and other circuit connections and contact devices actuated by the positioning of the car at a floor to permit the action of said electromagnetic devices only when the car is positioned at a floor.

14. In an elevator, the combination of a car, a door, a door operating motor and intermediate connections to effect movement of the door, a source of power to supply motor fluid under pressure to the motor, a valve to determine the transmission of pressure to the motor, electromagnetic devices to shift said valve, and circuit connections and contacts actuated in the movement of the car to control the operation of said electromagnetic devices.

15. In an elevator, the combination of a car, a door, a door operating motor and intermediate connect-ions to effect movement of the door, a source of power to supply motor fluid under pressure to the motor, a valve to detern'iine the transn'iission of pressure to the motor, electromagnetic devices to shift said valve, circuit connections and contacts actuated as the car comes to rest to control the operation of said electromagnetic devices to effect the opening of the door, and circuit connections and contacts under the control of the operator to control the operation of said electromagnetic devices to effect the closing of the door.

16. In an elevator, the con'ibii'iation of a car, a door, a door operating motor and intermediate connections to effect movement of the door, asourceof power to supply motor fluid under pressure to the motor, a valve to determine the transmission of pressure to the motor. electromagnetic devices to shift said valve, circuit connections and contacts actuated as the car comes to rest at any point to control the operation of said electromagnetic devices to effect the opening movement of the door, and circuit connec tions and contacts actuated by the positioning of the car at a floor to permit the operation of said electromagnetic devices only when the ear is positioned at a floor.

17. In an elevator, the combination of a car, a door, a door operating motor and intermediate connections to .eliect movement of the door, a .source of power to supply motor fluid under pressure to the motor, a valve to determine the transmission of pressure to the motor, electromagnetic devices to shift the valve, a governor actuated in the movement of the car, and circuit connections and contacts controlled by the governor to determine the operation of said electromagnetic devices.

18. In an elevator, the combination of a car, a door, a door operating motor and intermediate connections to effect movement of the door, a source of power to supply motor fluid under pressure to the motor, a I

valve to determine the transmission of pressure to the motor, electromagnetic devices to shift the valve, a governor actuated in the movement of the car, circuit connections and contacts actuated by the governor as the car comes to rest to control the operation of said electromagnetic devices to el'l'ect opening movement of the door, and other circuit connections and contacts under the control of the operator to control the operation of said electromagnetic devices to effectclosing movement of the door.

19. In an elevator, the combination of a car, a door, a door operating motor and intermediate connections to effect movement of the door, a source of power to supply motor fluid under pressure to the motor, a valve to determine the transmission of pressure to the motor, electromagnetic devices to shift the Valve, a governor actuated in the movement of the car, circuit connections and contacts actuated in the movement of the car to control the operation of said electromagnetic devices as the car comes to rest at any point, and other circuit connections and contacts actuated by the positioning of the car at a floor to permit the operation of said electromagnetic devices only when the car is positioned at a floor.

This specification signed this 3rd day of March A. D. 1926.

JOHN DARBY. 

